1974 USDA FOREST SERVICE GENERAL TECHNICAL REPORT PNW-12 This file was created by scanning the printed publication. Text errors identified by the software have been corrected; however, some errors may remain. THE FOREST ECOSYSTEM OF SOUTHEAST ALASKA l.The Setting Arland S. Harris 0. Keith Hutchison William R. Meehan Douglas N. Swanston Austin E. Helmers John C. Hendee Thomas M. Collins PACIFIC NORTHWEST FOREST AND RANGE EXPERIMENT STATION U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE FOREST SERVICE PORTLAND, OREGON ABSTRACT A description-of the discovery and exploration of southeast Alaska sets the scene for a discussion of the physical and biological features of this region. Subjects discussed include geography, climate, vegetation types, geology, minerals, forest products, soils, fish, wildlife, water, recreation, and esthetic values. This is the first of a series of publications sumnarizing present knowledge of southeast Alaska's forest resources. Pub1 ications will follow which discuss in detail the subjects mentioned above and how this information can be helpful in managing the resources. Keywords: Forest surveys, Alaska, resource planning, researc h. CONTRIBUTORS FORESTRY SCIENCES LABORATORY , JUNEAU ALASKA Arland S. Harris, Vegetation 0. Keith Hutchison, Wood Industries William R. Meehan, Fish and Vildlife FORESTRY SCIENCES LABORATORY , CORVALLIS, OREGON Douglas N. Swanston, Geology INSTITUTE OF NORTHERN FORESTRY, FAIRBANKS , ALASKA Austin E. Helmers, Discovery and History, Geography, Water MILDLAND RECREATION PROJECT, SEATTLE, WASHINGTON John C. Hendee, Recreation and Esthetics ALASKA REGION, U .S. FOREST SERVICE, JUNEAU, ALASKA Thomas pi. Collins, Soizs and Soil Development PREFACE This, the first in a series of pub1 ications summarizing knowledge about the forest resources of southeast dlaska, describes the physical, biological, and socioeconomic setting of southeast Alaska. It provides a background for the more technical reports which will follow. Our intent in presenting the information in these publications .is to provide managers and users of southeast Alaska's forest resources with the most complete information available for estimating the consequences of various management a1 ternatives. In this series of papers, we will summarize published and unpublished reports and data as well as the observations of resource scientists and managers developed over years of experience in southeast Alaska. These compilations will be valuable in planning future research on forest management in southeast Alaska. The extensive lists of references will serve as a bibliography on forest resources and their utilization for this part of the United States. ROBERT E. BUCKMAN, Director Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station Portland, Oregon CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ............................ 1 DISCOVERYANDHISTORY ....................... 3 GEOGRAPHY ............................. 7 Physiography ......................... 7 CwteandWeather...................... 8 GEOLOGY AND SOILS ......................... 10 Early Geologic History .................... 11 Pleistocene Glaciation .................... 14 Recent Geological Activity ...................15 Minerals and Mining ...................... 17 Soils and Soil Development ..................20 FOREST RESOURCES ......................... 23 Vegetation Types ....................... 23 Wood Industries ........................ 25 Fish and Wildlife ....................... 29 Water ............................ *33 Recreation and Esthetics ...................35 LI"ERA"uREcI"ED .......................... 36 INTRODUCTION In the changing fashions of organized study, science has passed through an era of emphasis on basic research. This emphasis has often left undone the interpretation of findings and their incorporation into the decisionmaking process. The reservoir of knowledge and technology accumulated through research is needed now more urgently than ever before to help solve natural resource management problems, The series of papers, of which this is the first, is an attempt to transfer technology from researchers to managers and users of southeastern Alaska ecosystems. The objectives of this series of compilations are (1) to provide guidelines in managing the forest resources of southeast Alaska, (2) to establish a framework for multidisciplinary research, and (3) to bring together the pertinent published and unpublished information concerning the forest resources of southeast Alaska. The geographic scope of this series is that portion of Alaska east of the 141st meridian (fig. ,l). A problem analysis and "state-of-the-art" evaluation for the central and southwest coasts are also needed; however, research information for that area falls off sharply compared with southeast Alaska. The scope of this group of papers includes: Forest ecology Ero swn and sedimentat ion Timber management Water, . Timber inventory Recreation and esthetics Fish and wiZdZife habitats Forest insects and diseases There are probably few places in the world where geologic and climatic variations are greater than in southeast Alaska. Around Juneau, for example, one can go from the salt-water depth of the Inland Passage to the perennial snow and ice of the Juneau Icefield in a horizontal distance of less than 8 miles and an elevational range of only 4,000 feet. Physiography and climate combine to intensify glaciation, which is presently active; soils are young and poorly developed; many slopes are unstable; abundant rainfall and cool summers favor reforestation of logged- over areas; water in great quantity is important to fish resources. These features profoundly affect use and management of the land, Industrial and economic developments are both old and new--fishing has a long history; large-scale timber harvesting is new; gold mining has come and, at least temporarily, is gone. There is a continuing small but steady interest in the extraction of minerals--some with large potential. The fur industry is essentially inactive. The social setting is new- Alaska is a new State, and a rapidly expanding population is responding to the opportunities to build and to benefit from newly tapped resources. It seems that "everyone wants to come to Alaska," at least to see the "great land," which means that the already important recreation and tourism activities will continue to expand. GULF OF ALASKA T Figure 1.--Map of southeast Alaska east of the 141st meridian. 2 DISCOVERY AND HISTORY The discovery of northwestern America by white men perhaps began when the Russians became curious about "the east." Shortly after Yemak Timofeief heard of "land to the east" from Anika Stroganoff in 1578 (Hartman et al. 1970), the Cossacks pushed across Siberia, until in 1639 Dimitrii Kopylov founded Okhotsk. The Chukotsk Peninsula was discovered in 1648. Mikhail Gvozdev was near, or landed on, Cape Prince of Wales, Seward Peninsula, in 1730 while exploring for the "great land" reported by the Chukchi natives (Alaska Chamber of Commerce 1938). Southeast Alaska was first sighted during Captain-Commander Vitus Bering's second expedition of discovery. This expedition, which sailed for America from Petropavlovsk, Russia, on June 4, 1741, included two ships-the St. Peter with Bering and the scientist George Wilhelm Steller on board and the St. P~UZ under the command of Alexei Chirikov (Gruening 1954'). After sailing eastward together for some days, the ships became separated and they proceeded independently. On July 15, Chirikov sighted land near Cape Addington on Noyes Island off the west side of Prince of Wales Island. Lacking a suitable landing place he turned north and on July 19 entered a bay which is believed to be today's Sitka Harbor. Two boats were sent ashore--the first with 11 men and, several days later, a second boat with three men, which is presumably the first time that white man set foot in Alaska. Both boats failed to return; Chirikov returned to Petropavlovsk. Bering searched for 3 days for the St. P~UZ after the ships became separated. He then sailed ENE and at about noon, July 16, sighted Mount St. Elias. Bering landed briefly on Kayak Island in Prince William Sound, where Stel ler went ashore to collect specimens and make observations. Bering subsequently made his way back as far as one of the Kommandorski Islands (Bering Island) during the first year of the expedition. There, he died, along with many of his crew. A Spanish expedition, commanded by Juan Perez in the ship Sant<ago, sighted Prince of Wales Island on July 18, 1774. The next year, Lieutenant Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra, with the schooner Sonora, sighted Mount Edgecumbe and, on the following day, anchored in Krestof Bay. He continued as far as 57'57' N. latitude before returning southward. Captain James Cook, on his third and last voyage of discovery in the Pacific, reached the Alaskan coast on May 1 , 1778, named Mount Edgecumbe, Mount Fairweather, and Bering Bay (now Yakutat Bay). Quadra again visited southeast Alaska, arriving at Bucareli Bay on May 2, 1779. The French explorer La Perouse sighted Mount St. Elias on June 3, 1786, and entered Lituya Bay on July 3. Captain George Dixon in the ship Queen CharZotte, and Captain Nathaniel Portlock in the King George visited southeast Alaska in 1787 in the service of the King George Sound Company. Captain Dixon sailed to Yakutat Bay, visited Sitka Sound, and then went to Dixon Entrance. Captain Portlock went to Chichagof Island where he entered and named Portlock Harbor. 3 In the wake of these early explorers and traders,